Canada says it won’t intervene in Mexican affairs, a day after judicial reform criticism ‘paused’ relations

OTTAWA — Global Affairs Canada says the federal government respects Mexican sovereignty and has no intention of intervening in that country’s internal affairs around proposed constitutional reforms.

The comments come a day after Mexico’s president told reporters Tuesday he has put relations with the Canadian and U.S. embassies “on pause” because of comments from the two countries about a proposed judicial overhaul.

The proposal includes having judges elected to office, something critics say would undermine the independence of the judiciary.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador did not say what a pause would entail, but accused Canada of interfering with an internal matter for expressing apprehension about the proposal.

In a statement, Global Affairs Canada says Canadian investors in Mexico are concerned that the reforms could affect the confidence they rely on to advance trade and investment with that country, but that there is no plan to intervene in Mexico’s internal affairs.

The department added that mission services to Canadian citizens are not affected.

— with additional reporting from The Associated Press

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